In all operations where an object can be held, advances in accuracy, tolerances, precision, efficiency, etc. are desirable and can be achieved. Holding devices (or apparatus) and/or mounting apparatuses range from very simple to very complex but fundamentally have the same goals. One of those goals is to maintain an object in a position or a set of positions for reasons such as retention and to facilitate an operation being applied to the object.
In an age of decreasing time availability, higher production demands, and in some cases even increasing fragility of some objects to be held, holding technologies are a potential bottleneck. New holding and mounting devices are continually needed to meet demands.